Newsroom

October 16, 2000

Parade through Town to Kick Off
Middlebury College Founders Day Celebration Nov.
1

Events Include History Festival
Featuring Exhibits and Performances by Area School Students,
Professional Entertainers, and Local Museums

MIDDLEBURY, Vt. -- At 12:30 p.m. on
Wednesday, Nov. 1, former Vermont governors, school marching bands,
and historical floats will all be part of a parade through downtown
Middlebury to commemorate Middlebury Colleges founding by town
fathers 200 years ago on the same date. The parade will launch a
day-long series of activities that will bring the community and the
College together in a celebration that lasts into the evening. A
ceremony on the town green immediately after the parade, a history
festival, and fireworks will complete the festivities. All events are
free and open to the public.

Nov. 1, Founders Day, is the
start of Founders Week, the five-day culmination of the
Colleges Bicentennial celebration, which concludes Nov.
5.

"It is fitting that we acknowledge
Founders Day with events that celebrate the history of Addison
County and the town of Middlebury, which gave birth to the College,"
said Middlebury College President John M. McCardell, Jr.

The parade will begin on Porter Field
Road off South Main Street (Route 30) and continue onto Main Steet,
culminating at the town green. Preparation for the parade began
months ago, according to Mona Wheatley, director of Bicentennial
planning for the College. Entries in the parade range from a float
created by Mary Hogan School students depicting the Otter Creek Falls
in Middlebury to community members dressed as local historic figures.
The parade route will be closed to traffic from 12:30-1:30
p.m.

Following the parade at 1:30 p.m., a
ceremony will take place on the town green, where former Vermont
governors, as well as state, local, and College officials will give
brief remarks. After the ceremony, the College will serve birthday
cake to all those present.

From 4:308:30 p.m., "Our Town,
Our College: A Festival of Community History" will

take place on the College campus at
Bicentennial Hall on Bicentennial Way off College Street (Route 125).
Area school students from the 4th-12th grades,
professional entertainers from throughout Vermont, and local museums
will offer exhibits and performances.

Entertainment includes the French
Canadian music and dancing of the Beaudoin Family, the songs and
stories of Margaret MacArthur, frequent guest on public radios
A Prairie Home Companion, " and a 19th century magic
show. Students will provide a display about settlements along Otter
Creek 200 years ago, models of the log cabin where Revolutionary War
heroine Ann Story lived, and other exhibits. Visitors will learn
about the 19th century Merino sheep craze in Addison
County at the Rokeby Museums presentation and observe exhibits
and demonstrations from the Shelburne Museum, the Lake Champlain
Maritime Museum, and other local museums.

Light refreshments will be available
free of charge.

At 8 p.m., festivalgoers will view
birthday fireworks from the western entrance of Bicentennial
Hall.

For more information, contact Susan Levine in
the Middlebury College external affairs office at 443-5183.

To follow is a schedule of
events:

Events Calendar
Listings

Founders Day

Middlebury College Bicentennial
Celebration

November 1

12:30 p.m.: Bicentennial
Parade

Parade will feature Middlebury Union
High School and Middlebury Union Middle School marching bands,
historical costumes, and floats celebrating the town and
Colleges shared past. Parade begins on Porter Field Road off
South Main Street (Route 30) and continues onto Main Street,
culminating at the town green.

1:30 p.m.: Ceremony on Middlebury
Town Green

Following the parade, former Vermont
governors, as well as state, local, and College officials will give
brief remarks at a ceremony celebrating 200 years of town and College
history, with birthday cake for all.

4:308:30 p.m.: Our Town, Our
College: A Festival of Community History

Area school students from 4th-12th
grades, professional entertainers from throughout Vermont, and local
museums will offer exhibits and performances. Entertainment includes
the French Canadian Beaudoin Family and frequent "Prairie Home
Companion" guest Margaret MacArthur. Student exhibits include models
of the log cabin where Revolutionary War heroine Ann Story lived.
Exhibits and demonstrations from the Shelburne Museum, the Lake
Champlain Maritime Museum, and others. Free refreshments.